Wednesday, August 22, 2007

CNN [christiane amanpour] Does It Again -- The Jewish Holy City of Hebron is "Arab land"

One of the things to think about when watching a "news" report or a feature story on TV is: What are they leaving out? What did they not mention? What has been omitted?

CNN & Christiane Amanpour did that big time today in an excerpt that I saw of her three part series "God's Warriors." The excerpt focussed on the suffering of Hebron's Jewish community. However, CNN & Amanpour manage to blame the Jews there for the fanatical Arab violence against them. Indeed, one interviewee, the bearded but short on brains Gershom Goremberg, suggested that Muslim fanatical violence world wide was due to the Jews in Hebron. The context that CNN gave to his words indicates that that is CNN and Amanpour's position.

1- The male announcer introduces the story by saying that some Jews are living on "Arab land." This is false history and racist Judeophobia as well.a) during the excerpt that I saw there was no mention that Hebron was continuously inhabited by Jews from First Temple times until 1929, with a possible break during the Crusades. See earlier posts on Hebron on this blog, especially the lengthy quotes from the American writer John Lloyd Stephens who stayed with the Hebron Jewish community in the early 19th century.b) CNN & Christiane did not mention that Hebron is considered one of four Jewish holy cities. The others are: Jerusalem, Safed, and Tiberias.c) nor did anyone mention the massacre of Jews in Hebron in 1929 which was perpetrated by Arabs but in which British officials collaborated. See Pierre van Paassen's books, Forgotten Ally [circa 1944] and Days of Our Years for more on the Hebron massacre, including Van Paassen's interview with the acting British High Commissioner at the time.d) Amanpour claimed that only "500 Jewish settlers" live in Hebron. That number has been given by the media for about 15 years now. The true number is probably more like 900, including Yeshiva students.

2- Attention was given the murder of Rabbi Shlomo Ra`anan who was murdered by an Arab in Hebron about ten years ago. His daughter was allowed by Amanpour to narrate the story of his murder. He was in the kitchen of his home [a modular, mobile home called a "caravan" in Israel] when the murderer entered and killed him. Yet the impression was given that it was all because the "Jewish settlers" had infringed Arab [or "palestinian"] rights and sensitivities by living on "Arab land."

3- Yet CNN & Amanpour did show that the hatred and violence and fanaticism come from the Arabs, not the Jews, who are shown studying Jewish holy books in Hebrew. To be sure, Amanpour had already belittled the Jewish holy books and the Biblical accounts of Jews in Hebron by her use of the raised eyebrow and the pregnant pause. Naturally, she is ignorant [sincerely ignorant, I believe] of the Greco-Latin accounts, including those of Christian Church Fathers who wrote about Jews in the Land of Israel and Hebron after Emperor Hadrian had changed the name of the Province of Judea [IVDAEA] to "Provincia Syria-Palaestina" [135 CE]. That is , Jews were living in large numbers in the Land of Israel and in Hebron in the late Roman and Byzantine periods. It is quite possible that neither Amanpour nor anyone else at CNN knows anything about this.

4- Amanpour brought in one bearded but short-on-brains-&-knowledge Gershom Goremberg to make her point that Muslim violence worldwide is on account of Israel's possession of any part of the Land of Israel, Hebron in particular. Goremberg may defend himself, saying That's not what I meant. But he remains an ignoramus.

Islamic hatred of Jews goes way back to the Middle Ages and is evident in the Qur'an and the Hadith traditions. The Hamas charter [Article 7] contains a medieval Muslim Hadith fable that goes like this: At Judgement Day, the Muslims will fight the Jews who will hide behind rocks and trees. The rocks and trees will cry out: O Muslim, a Jew is hiding behind me. Come kill him.

How plain do the Muslims have to be to convince a fool like Goremberg?

On the past 19th day [of July], Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Number Two of Al-Qaeda, took credit for the attack against the Spanish troops in Lebanon that caused the death of six soldiers. And he mentioned once again Al-Andalus [= Spain] and Ceuta and Melilla [enclaves on the Moroccan coast that have been in Spanish hands since before 1492 when the Arabs were defeated in Granada in southern Spain. Spain considers them its sovereign territory] as occupied territories.

It seems to me that the Islamist fanatics have set their eyes on a lot more than just Hebron or Israel. Spain too is considered "occupied territory."- - - - - - - -Coming: more on Time whitewashing Hamas in Gaza, Jews in Jerusalem and Hebron, peace follies, propaganda, James Baker & US policy on Israel, etc.

BK & Yehudi, I removed an offensive post with a link to a neo-Nazi site featuring the Jewish-born maniac Judeophobe, Benj Freedman, who died years ago. See, the chomskys & n finkelsteins are not such a new phenomenon. There is definitely a mental disturbance among this ilk.

a perverse creep calling himself "mustapha krapp" left an offensive comment, insulting to Jews, on this thread. I don't have to tolerate this garbage on my own blog, although I have no choice when I hear and see it on bbc, cnn, al-jazeera, etc.

krapp [fitting indeed] seems to be promoting notions out of the so-called Protocols of the Elders of Zion. This work is both a forgery and plagiarism. Some parts of the Protocols show a certain insight into modern politics, which is probably one of the reasons why it is cherished by some looneys. The insights in the Protocols are plagiarized from the 19th century political pamphlet, directed against Napoleon III, by the French writer, Maurice Joly. This work is called Dialogue aux enfers entre Machiavel et Montesquieu. Joly's work is aimed at Napoleon III, not against Jews, whom Joly does NOT blame for the world's woes.

I suggest that "krapp" find an English translation of Joly's work and read it. He may find even more insights than he had before. If he can read the French original, then better yet.

About

The world swims in lies. Who doesn't know that? Even the dupes are told there are lies about. We aim to dispel the fog of lies, especially about Israel, like our prophets of old and our poets like Yehudah haLevi.
We feature historic sources, documents, excerpts from the classics, etc.
How shall I render my vows and my bonds, While yet
Zion lieth beneath the fetter of Edom, and I in Arab chains?
The false prophets cry Peace, and there is no peace.
A new post every 2 or 3 days.

About Me

צלום דבורה בת יהודה לייב ז''ל
Dvoyreh bas Yehudah Leyb, Eliyahu's mother. My own photo will have to await more peaceful times.
I have been an observer of
the human comedy, and the human tragedy for many years.